Reliable electrical connections are crucial in high power applications, such as powering of heavy electrical machinery often used in the mining or petroleum industry, or connection of power transportation lines. In these applications the electrical cables transmit high currents at voltages of one or more kV.
Typical electrical connectors used in the art have a plurality of pins or sockets, each being connected to a respective core of an electrical cable. Depending on the specific application, the connectors must comply with specific requirements or standards. The compliance of the connectors with the relevant standards is examined by a certifying body.
The certification of a connector for a specific application generally ensures that the connector meets basic safety requirements. While known certified connectors are now relatively safe to operate, they still have a number of disadvantages. For example, although high power connectors used in the tunnelling, mining or petroleum industries typically need to comply with strict requirements including requirements related to explosions, it may be advantageous to provide a high power connector that further reduces a risk, or the effect of, an explosion or similar.